A Thousand Unseen Stars
by bluewingedkitty
Summary: Even in an alternate universe where only some of the Flock got away from the School, even though circumstances are drastically different, people can remain the same. Yes, this means Fax, guys. Called "intruiging", "creative"..."awesomely-awesome".
1. Lucky Souls

**A/N Hello, everyone! This is my new, multi-chapter project, A Thousand Unseen Stars (a story in bite sized chapters). I wanted a challenge, so each chapter will be less than 500 words long. I've got it all planned out, and I won't post a chapter until I finish the one after it, so hopefully I'll be more consistent with updating. **

**Those of you who have read my other stories, prepare for something different....No humor. Gasp. I know. I'm not sure I can do it...but I'll try. ****XD**** If you want something funnier, then go check out any of my other stories.**

**Speaking of which: Any of you who follow Before It's Too Late, I've updated. It's kinda the climax chapter, and I was kind of expecting more than three reviews....okay. On with the story. :P**

_I believe that no one is born good or bad. Anyone has the capacity to be both. The ones who are born around those who will encourage them to be good people are lucky. But even those who aren't can still find goodness in them, brought out by those who want to help. It's the ones who are born around those who don't care if they are good or bad people and still become wonderful people who are the lucky souls. _

He was made for this.

The door was no problem. They slipped inside the house and split up. The littlest girl stood in the center of the room. "Clear. They're sleeping." She swallowed. "Target down that hall, first door to the left."

He gestured to the other girl. "Check the computers."

He walked silently down the hall, pushing open the door to the target's room.

The woman was sleeping, as she should be at two in the morning. _The wee hours of the morning are when the human body is the weakest. _

He noticed a picture of a young girl on the woman's dresser. Her daughter, then. The girl had the same face. There was a brief jolt of emotion in his chest. Well, this wasn't his fault, what he had to do.

He made it quick and painless, a short snap to the neck. She wouldn't have felt anything.

He left the room quickly. The youngest girl watched him with her penetrating blue eyes.

"It's done," he told her unnecessarily.

"She had a daughter," the girl said softly. "She's twelve."

He didn't reply.

The second girl appeared with a laptop. "It's on here," she said, eyes bright. "Everything. I checked all the other computers, but there aren't any back-up files. I can check the internet storage account she had when we get back--"

"Do you need anything else here?" he interrupted.

She sighed. "No."

He turned to the first girl. "The daughter...she knew nothing?"

The girl shook her head, tears in her eyes. He pretended not to see. "We're done here, then."

They exited the house, into the cool desert night. He spread wings and jumped into the air, like a dark angel. The two followed.

_Valencia (Val) Martinez was 46 found dead of a suspected homicide early this morning. Her house appeared to have been broken into during the night. Her daughter found her in her bed this with a broken neck and called 911. The 12 year old girl was shaken but unharmed. _

_Valencia was born March 5__th__ 1963, to Maria and Roberto Martinez. She graduated from University of California with a veterinary degree and moved to Mesa, AZ soon after, eventually opening her own practice. She volunteered around the community and was a regular donor to local charities. She is survived by one daughter, a sister and a nephew. Preceded in death by her husband, Daniel and her two parents. Anyone with information pertaining to her death should contact the police._

**Word count: 496**

**A/N I can't express how much I'd love to know what you thought of that...*wink, wink* **

**Till the next update,**

**BlueWingedKitty**


	2. Despite Circumstances

**A/N: Hi... I just had a very strange day for many reasons you probably don't want to hear.**

**Evil Yet Funny Advice Of The Day: You don't have to outrun a bear. You just have to run faster than the person next to you.**

**Yes, someone in my class said this in History. Someone who lost a bet and was subsequently wearing a duct tape dog collar. Hard to take them seriously after that.**

**Next chapter in the lovely bite sized story. Hope you enjoy. Thanks to those who reviewed, I love, love, love hearing what you think. Especially after this chapter ends...XD So. On we go...**

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_

_I know I'm a lucky person. I'm surrounded by those who care for me, despite...circumstances. _

"Argh." I slammed my head onto the computer desk. When Jeb said to write it all down, I thought it would help, not be the pain the you-know-what it is.

_I guess I should start by telling about my circumstances._

_There's no real subtle way of putting this. I'm a genetic experiement that worked. I was created to be 'super'. I know everyone's special in their own way, but I'm..._really _special. You see, I have wings. And they work. I can fly._

Okay. That being said. I drummed my fingers on the keyboard. What else to add? Family. Right.

_I live with Jeb and Iggy and Gazzy. Jeb is the closest thing to a parent I have. And Iggy and Gazzy are the closest thing I have to brothers. They're like me. _

_In that they can fly_.

_I don't have any genetic family I know of._

_So how did I become special? _

_It started with a group of scientists who work closely with the huge company that's pretty much taken over the world...Itex. They, for reasons known only to themselves needed super-strong assassins. Some idiot thought 'Hey! Genetic engineering! We'll MAKE one! Or two!" Or six. They made six of us. _

_I'm one of the lucky three that made it out alive. By that I mean_

"I'm DONE!" Gazzy barged into my room. "Finally done with all that homework! I'm FREE!"

"Great." I continued staring at the screen.

"Are you really writing that diary thing Jeb wanted you to?"

"Yes," I said defensively.

"Can I read it?" He walked from the door to behind me.

"No!" I quickly x-ed the window.

"Max!"

"It's private!"

He pouted. "Fine. I'm going to watch TV." He exited my room and shut the door. I heard him walk down the stairs.

Gah. I loved Gazzy, but he had totally made me lose my train of thought there. I rubbed my head and re-opened Word, and began recovering my document.

And the door opened again.

"Hello, there," Iggy walked in and sat on the edge of my bed.

"Why are you here?" I asked.

"Gazzy commandeered the TV. Said you were writing and you kicked him out."

"So you came in?"

"Exactly." Having found my document, I got up from my desk and reclined on my bed. I re-opened it, and began a new paragraph, seeing as I didn't remember where I was going with the last one. There was so much to tell...

_Gazzy's really sweet, but he can be annoying, as little brothers tend to be. He's eight._

_Iggy can be annoying too. He's fourteen, my age. _

_And he's blind. I'll explain that later._

_Despite the annoying-ness, he's a great friend. _

_But I'm pretty sure he has more than friendship on his mind. _

_And I think I might too._

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**Word count: 481**

**A/N I know the summary says FAX...but be patient, young grasshoppers. All will be made clear in time. **

**In the meantime, review and I'll see if I can pick up the pace a bit. :P**


	3. Rare People

**A/N: It needs to snow where I live. It's too cold for it NOT to snow. I'm only willing to put up with the cold if there's snow. Or I'm moving to Florida. **

**Other News: Anyone who's a fan of Frogs or Jeans should definitely check out Monsters. It's a two-shot, and part one is up. The rest of you go read it too. :)**

**The summary will now be consisting of a quote from the current chapter. And at the end of each story, I'll include next chapter's summary, because...just because. **

**If this chapter doesn't make sense, go back and read the first. It's right after that one takes place chronologically. **

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_There are people who love life, although life has treated them badly. They're rare. I'm fortunate to know a few of them. There are those who're bitter at the cards life dealt them. Then something happens and they...change. For the better. They're rarer. _

She was waiting at the door of their "house" wearing a navy pencil skirt, a navy blouse, and navy heels, and a smile just as fake as her blonde hair. She looked like a secretary. Looks were deceiving. This was one of the most dangerous woman in the country.

He hated her.

"Well _done_," she beamed. "I hope you don't mind me intruding."

They stepped over the threshold, and she shut the door quickly. "Congratulations are in order, I believe," she said. The littlest girl avoided her eyes. "I brought take-out. It's on the table." She nodded at the girls, a clear dismissal.

"Good job," she added quietly to him. "Minimal fuss. One more potential threat terminated. You are quite the talk of Itex. I received a call inquiring about you from Marian Janssen herself yesterday. I'm very pleased, of course."

"Thank you, Dr. Walker."

"She wanted to know when we could spare you to wrap up some loose ends in Germany. We'll send you over after one last major assignment. Then you'll stay in Germany for twelve weeks. The girls will stay here, naturally."

He felt a flutter of an emotion he couldn't identify in his chest. "Why can't they come?"

A spark flared behind her icy eyes. "They were not requested by the International Director of Itex."

"But..." he struggled to find words. "They're all I have..."

"Nonsense. They're better off. The littlest one is a tad young for this business anyways."

"_Angel_," he said under his breath.

"I'm sorry?"

"Nothing."

"Don't worry about them. You'll be back soon enough." She picked up a briefcase beside the door. "Everything is in here, details, directions. I suspect you will have fun with this operation. Just be sure to erase the hard drive with a magnet when you're done." She handed the case to him.

"I'll give a quick rundown of the mission before I leave." She checked her watch. "You need to terminate four potential threats and anyone who gets in the way. This sounds simple, but there's more. Three of them are like you, but escaped...extras. _Like_ you," she repeated meaningfully.

"The fourth, Dr. Batchleder, has eluded every operative sent after him for four years. It's no piece of cake to eliminate these four, but if anyone can, it's you. Tell you what: you can take the girls along. Pack your bags tonight, tomorrow I'll have you at another safe house."

He nodded, no emotion, as usual. No emotion made him valuable. No shown emotion.

"Wonderful." She looked out the window as a nondescript black car pulled into the driveway. "One more thing. The girl. She calls herself Maximum Ride." She opened the door. "Don't underestimate her. Good night."

She shut the door.

Word Count: 498

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**Coming next chapter: **

_It's mind-blowing how lucky I am._

_Sometimes, it's hard to appriciate that. _

There are days that you need to punch in the face. Mostly Mondays. Occasionally Wednesdays.

But usually Mondays.


	4. Punching Monday

**A/N: I am so proud of myself. I have NOTHING to do today. No homework. NOTHING. It's a beautiful feeling. **

**Don't you think that Punching Monday would be a really good band name? **

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_12-7-09_

_It's mind-blowing how lucky I am._

_Sometimes, it's hard to appreciate that. _

There are days that you need to punch in the face. Mostly Mondays. Occasionally Wednesdays. But usually Mondays.

10.5 Reasons to Punch Monday in the Face

1. It was cold, windy and there was _black ice _on the roads, and they didn't cancel school.

2. I procrastinated my English project because I'd been counting on the fact they'd cancel school.

3. I was going to do my entire English project during lunch.

4. We lost power.

5. It was cold.

6. My alarm didn't go off.

6.5 We missed the bus--but that's happened more times than we've actually made it to the bus, so it doesn't really count.

7. My favorite sweatshirt was MIA, along with an entire load of laundry that Gazzy supposedly "did".

8. Iggy threw up halfway to school.

I felt his forehead.

"Jeb, he's burning up." I shot a look at Gazzy that told him to not even _think_ about mimicking that Judas-or-whatever-Brother's song, but he was too busy not touching the Iggy puke spattered by his seat.

Jeb sighed. "Will he be okay until I drop you guys off?"

I pushed his hair back from his sweaty face. "You're gonna be okay?" I asked softly.

He groaned. "Yup. Don't tell Gazzy, but I think it was the chicken sandwich he made yesterday. I think he grabbed the expired chicken. It's my own fault for not throwing it out yet," he said quietly, clutching his stomach, turning, and projectile vomiting out the window.

9. We were late.

10. When we got inside school Gazzy turned to me.

"I forgot my lunch."

I gave him all my pocket money.

Things got marginally better after I slunk into my Algebra class. Mr. Coacher was an oblivious old man who didn't notice there was a class in front of him half the time. He muttered to himself and wrote things on the board. We could've played strip poker and he wouldn't have looked up.

As a result, I liked this class. I sat down next to JJ.

"Where were you?"

"Late. Ig puked. Zane forgot his lunch money."

"Wonderful."

Okay, the name thing. We named ourselves, right? Well, I couldn't exactly go to school as Maximum Ride. I was now Kristine Batchleder. The Gasman became Zane. Technically, Iggy was James (which we'd found was his real name), but he basically said "Screw it, call me Iggy" first day of school, which I kinda wished I'd done.

We switched schools approximately every two years. It was out first year here. And it was going to suck when we left. I actually had friends.

The morning passed in a blur of math, science, and other important subjects I paid no attention to.

"Kris, where are you going?" I bumped into Tess.

"Library, I didn't finish my project for Ms. Stetz."

"The Animal Farm one? That's due tomorrow."

Things were looking up.

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**Word count: 492**

**Next time on A Thousand Unseen Stars (Lol...ahem): **_I really like where I am now... I have friends, family, and cable. It's a wonderful thing. A far cry from dog cages and needles, you know?_


	5. Forgiving Monday

**A/N I dedicate this to people from my old school, who I may not like that much, but still remind me of kindergarten. Especially the wrestling and the hitting and the general disregard of the "keep your hands to yourself" rule. Well, just the guys. **

**I went caroling with these wackos. (and my friends, too). It was very entertaining, even if they ditched us. **

**And to people from my new school...who were a big inspiration for this chapter. **

**DISCLAIMER- Not only do I not own anything in this chapter except the OCs, but NONE OF THE CHARACTERS WERE BASED ON MY FRIENDS. The events, yes, characters, no. **

_I really like where I am now... I have friends, family, and cable. It's a wonderful thing. A far cry from dog cages and needles, you know?_

Lunch is always interesting. First of all, I HAVE FRIENDS. I sit with JJ (my first friend here), then Tess, Sam, Lissa (Sam's girlfriend), Liam (JJ's sometimes boyfriend and best friend), Jake _his _girlfriend, Bella, and of course Iggy.

Bella was venting about Team Edward harassing her about Jake. "THESE GIRLS HAVE NO LIFE! IT'S A _BOOK_! So what if I'm not going out with Edward?" she ranted. "THERE ISN'T EVEN AN EDWARD AT THIS SCHOOL! I didn't pick my name, Jake didn't pick his, and he's NOT A WEREWOLF! IT'S FICTION!"

"Down, girl," Jake said.

Our Bella had no resemblance to the _other _Bella. She was a petite Japanese girl with highlights who wore Aerosmith t-shirts and was a drumliner in our marching band.

And Jake was a gangly half-Jamaican. And no, he didn't say 'mon'.

The guys were discussing some football thing. Lissa was practically on Sam's lap, looking at him with puppy dog eyes as he explained simple football terms that she definitely already knew. I mean, even_ I _knew what a field goal was. Sometimes the two of them make me want to barf.

Well, just Lissa. She's okay, I just don't like her. She didn't like me from when Sam said hi and sat next to me at lunch on my first day of school. She gave me a very nasty look that quite clearly said _Stay away from my man, _although I didn't do anything.

I can't blame her though. I almost gave that same look to Tess when she sat next to Iggy that day too.

Oh, Tess. I like her, I really do. But she has this obvious crush on Iggy, making me a little twitchy about her.

"Kris, where's Iggy?" Tess asked.

"Food poisoning from a chicken sandwich," I said, unwrapping my lunch and looking at it critically. "The leftovers of which are part of_ my_ sandwich." I re-wrapped the offending sandwich and threw it away.

When I got back, Bella and Jake had broken out a deck of cards and were playing Solitaire.

"Totally defeating the purpose of the game..." Liam said

"...but she's not ranting anymore," JJ said.

"At least we don't finish each other's sentences," Jake shot back, not looking up.

So Liam and JJ began transparently flirting. Leaving me, Sam, and Puppy-Eyes.

"Did you hear we're going to get a new kid tomorrow? He's in my first hour, Ms. Krause said," Sam said.

"That'll be nice, not being the new kids anymore," I said.

"YES!" Lissa screamed. We all looked at her. She had a camera out.

"I finally got a picture of Liam and JJ snuggling!" There was a pause.

As one, JJ and Liam stood up ominously

Lissa's eyes widened. "Crap," she squeaked and took off, JJ and Liam in hot pursuit.

And those are my buddies.

**  
Word Count: 499--wow, cutting it close...**

**Coming up on **_**A Thousand Unseen Stars**_**:**

_I always find things to be thankful for._

Inside, he was trembling.

They were sending him to a school. To kill a student.

It was the school part he was worried about.


	6. Lifechanging Creepiness

**A/N: Everyone having a good break? Enjoy. XD**

**AND REVIEW! I love my reviews. AND I usually reply. Unless I forget. In which case you should tell me...in another review! **

**Or it could be that my Gmail's acting up again. My story link and all the reviews had a two day delay before they showed up in Gmail last time I updated. What's up with that...?**

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12-8-09

_I always find things to be thankful for._

Inside, he was trembling.

They were sending him to a school. To kill a student.

It was the school part he was worried about.

Angel was excited. Nudgie was excited, but nervous.

And he was trembling. Internally. So much could happen.

What did he know for certain?

They were together, for the time being.

Dr. Walker was going to leave them together for this mission.

Which could take a long time.

He needed to kill at least one student, who was_ like_ him. Whatever.

He was going to Germany, whether he liked it or not.

"Are we going yet?" Angel asked, brushing curls off her face.

He checked his watch. "One minute."

Nudge chewed her lip. "What if--?"

"It'll be okay, Nudgie," Angel said reassuringly. "If normal people can do this, so can we."

A car pulled up with their fake mother in it. Dr. Walker honked the horn.

He was scared.

-

_I never believed in those instances that could change your life. Until now. _

So I got home, made sure Iggy wasn't dying, finished homework (making a point of doing my English project) and watched an NCIS rerun on USA.

I zoned out all Tuesday morning. (But JJ and I watched most of 17 Again on her iTouch during Algebra).

Then...lunch.

Jake was complaining about New Moon. "Taylor Lautner just totally busted my bubble of manliness," he moaned. "I don't even know him and I hate him. I'm considering switching to Team Edward just so I can have my ego back."

Bella sat down. "_Excuse_ me?" she asked sharply. "You read those unmentionable books?"

"He saw the movie," Liam said.

Bella sat up rigidly. "You....saw...._what?_" she said through her teeth.

Jake looked terrified.

"We had an agreement," she continued, eerily quiet. "Well. If you can see the movie, then so will I. With you."

"Wha-at?"

"I have nothing tonight," she said calmly. "It's a date." She began impaling dumplings with her fork, leaving the rest us in silent hysterics.

"Tough luck, man." Liam clapped Jake on the back.

"Bring a blindfold and earplugs," Sam advised, sitting next to Lissa, followed by another guy. The new kid. Oh yeah. "This is Nick. He's new, I'm supposed to show him around."

Sam introduced our table. I swear his eyes narrowed when Sam got to me.

To add to the creepiness factor, I had the feeling he watched me the whole lunch, but everytime I looked at him, he was looking elsewhere.

"Did you see the new guy staring at me at lunch?" I asked Iggy in an undertone as we stopped by my History classroom.

He rolled his eyes.

Then it clicked. "Oh. Oops. Sorry. Guess not..."

"Nope. Sure it's not your head?"

"Dunno."

"Well, don't flatter yourself. See you." He walked next door to his Spanish class.

I walked into History as the bell rang. The first thing I saw was Nick, smirking to himself.

Creepy, much?

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**Word count: 496**

**A/N: Coming up next time on A Thousand Unseen Stars: **_There are people who stick in your mind like superglue--forever. _


	7. Superglue People

**A/N I really really need to come up with a better way to organize all the chapters floating around my computer. It's really confusing. I almost uploaded the chapter that comes AFTER this. GAHH.**

_There are people who stick in your mind like superglue--forever. _

I sat down at my usual desk, next to Tess.

Guess who sat beside me?

"Hi, Kristine," he said.

"Hi," I said warily. "Welcome to North Adams and all that crap."

"Thank you, it's spectacular to be here and all that crap."

And then Mr. Hollcox walked in. Mr. Hollcox is one of those people who makes respect ooze out of other people's pores. I don't know how he does it. I'd love to know.

But he has the misfortune of teaching a boring, boring class.

"Transatlantic Triangular Trade," Mr. Hollcox boomed, geustruing to a projected map. "From Europe, to Africa, to the colonies, and back to Europe, thus completing the triangle...let's see who read last night. Countries involved in Transatlantic Triangular Trade. Mr. Lassiler?"

"Uh. England."

"Yes. Miss Warren."

"Sweden, Portugal, Denmark, Spain--"

"Thank you, Miss Warren, well done, but leave some to those of your peers who haven't memorized the text book yet. Miss Batchleder?"

I chewed my lip. "France?"

"Yes. Mr. Walker--my new student? I forgot, I apologize. There aren't extra books in my class at the moment... share with Miss Batchleder and read the names of the remaining countries."

Reluctantly, I pushed my book to the edge of my desk and flipped to the chapter. Nick scanned the page. "Brandenburg and the Netherlands, also Brazil and North America."

"Correct. Stretch your minds back to the begining of the year. What do these countries--except Brazil-- have in common? Jared Diamond's theory of...what? I know you know, Miss Warren. Anyone else? No..all right."

"Geographic luck. They were all geographically lucky. Their climate was hospitable to crops, leading to a surplus of food, and the eventual foundation of powerful civilizations. These civilzations grew into affulent nations..."

Miss Tess Warren. Only person actually somehow able to pay attention to Mr. Hollcox. Tess was, in plain terms, a nerd. But we love her...mostly cause she explains History & Geo to us right before finals.

"Nice. Everyone copy and complete the chart on page 498," Mr. Hollcox continued.

"Kristine."

"Shh," I hissed.

"Do you mind moving your elbow off South Afica?" Nick asked politely.

I moved my elbow off South Africa.

The class decended into light chatter. I mindlessly filled in the vocab chart.

"Where'd cotton and tobacco come from?" Nick asked, next to my ear. I winced.

"New York."

"Where's it say that?" he demanded.

"There."

"Show me." I sighed and pointed, squeezing my arm under his.

"Sorry," he said, pulling his hand back, brushing my sweatshirt. Brushing the tip of my wing, actually.

Oh, dear.

"You seem familiar," I babbled, trying to distract him from anything he might've felt. "Have I met you?"

"You mean before lunch," he stated, glancing at me. A line appeared briefly between his eyebrows. "...no, I don't think so." He went back to his chart and didn't disturb me for the rest of class.

Whew.

**Word Count: 490**

**Coming Up: **

_"In this farewell, there is no blood."_

I have to kill her.

I wonder why I feel so...

I wonder why I feel anything at all.


	8. No Blood

**_A/N _I am angry. I am trying to watch NCIS on and it will not let me. Grr.**

**Lucky for you, you get a new chapter...**

**By the way, thank you thank you thank you for the annonymous reviews. I had this whole thing written out to each of you and it got deleted. But... **

**Kelc: Thanks! You're awesome for reviewing all chapters...don't worry, I'm not laughing, I wish I had recess in 6th grade. Ideas...? When they come at the right time I write them down and they turn into stories. I guess...**

**Nighthawk21- You'll have to wait and see... thanks.**

**loopdiloop369- You're the first one to mention the obituary! Yay! That was a last minute thing. Glad you liked. **

**BelPreemie- Thanks! I know, but you don't want the chapters long, trust me. **

**Chapter 8 is dedicated to Vitamin String Quartet. Without their amazing cover of What I've Done, this chapter would be something I haven't done. Okay, bad puns aside, moving on...**

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"In this farewell, there is no blood."_

I have to kill her.

I wonder why I feel so...

I wonder why I feel anything at all.

* * *

_Spending time with immature boys is tedious. Males are easily distracted. _

"Mind out of the gutter, Ig," I said, jabbing his ribs. He was drooling over a girl in the library. "You can't see her, anyways."

"She sounds hot."

"Pig."

We were in the library for exactly two reasons.

One: We were walking home--Jeb had to do something-or-another and couldn't give us a ride.

Two: It rained.

I needed to get out of the library for exactly one reason: Iggy and Gazzy.

Well, that's two reasons, but if you lump them together, it's one reason.

Do I need to explain? They're _immature_ boys.

"I need some air," I said after ten minutes of fart jokes and other unmentionables. "I'm going to walk around and get a burger. Be back in a few minutes."

"Fine," said Iggy. "Don't sit on me when you get back."

"...I'd sit on you because...?" I asked, shrugging into my windbreaker.

"You're cold. You do when you're cold."

"No...I don't."

"Yes, you do."

"Okay, next time I sit on you, tell me." Giving him a totally wasted weird look, I left.

I was a block away when someone flew at me.

Not literally--'flew' meaning 'attempted to drag me down an alley while simultaneously pummeling me'.

I didn't panic. I'm a natural fighter. It's easy for me. When I was at the School, they needed five scientists to subdue me. I was a whirring little hurricane of fists and feet. (Still am...but with more technique. I've learned to strike in places that hurt).

That was before the Erasers. _Then_ they only needed two.

So when this human jumped me, I smacked his nose. Hard. There was a crack, but no blood. I kicked his groin.

As he was hunched over, one hand grasping his nose, I wasn't expecting any more issues from him.

I was correct.

Too bad he had a buddy.

I punched Buddy in the sternum. He stumbled back, but then I felt arms clasping my midriff. _Somebody bounced back fast, _I thought grimly as I elbowed his head. As expected, he let go, but Buddy was back in action.

_Holy shitake mushrooms. Resilient humans. _Even Iggy could barely stand a hit to the head, nose _and..._groin and still be in action.

No, not like that. Mind out of gutter, people.

And then Mr. Ninja came swooping in (not literally) to save the day.

Insert eye-roll.

He hit Buddy's neck, and growled, "Leave her." That was all.

My would-be mugger and his bud retreated.

It was quite frustrating.

"I was fine," I said angrily.

"I see," Nick said. "Just being chivalrous."

"Just being sexist."

"A thank you'd be nice."

"I told you, I was fine," I spat. My ego was bruised. I turned on my heel and stalked off, leaving him in the rain.

_Word count: 497_

_Coming up next time: **I'll face myself/to cross out what I've become/erase myself/and let go of what I've done.**_

**_"_Why," she asked coldly, "Is Maximum Ride not dead?"**


	9. What's Done

**A/n Guess what? My computer crashed! Whooo. **

**The good news is that all the chapters for this story are on Google Docs, so I didn't lose any. **

**Bad news is I might've lost everything else....cross your fingers, please....**

**My English class has begun studying Romeo and Juliet...BY ACTING IT OUT.** **Yikes. But we rotate parts, so it's okay. The first Romeo was this guy I've known for ages, and he's a total loner. It was priceless. For me. Torture for him, probably. **

**Anyways, I've come to the conclusion that Romeo is a creeper. Just as much as Edward. Let's see: he goes to a party to spy on Rosaline (stalker), sees this 13 year old girl, makes out with her, then follows her home. Juliet's a naive rebound girl. And they've known each other for less than 12 hours and--guess what!-- they decided to get _married_ so they can "get busy", as my English teacher puts it. And that's another thing: Shakespeare is such a _pervert! _The whole play's rather dirty.**

**On that note, let's begin. Refresher: Max has just been attacked by 2 random guys who she finds out she can't fend off as easily as she'd hoped. Then Fang attempts to help and she totally rejects him. Ouch. **

_ I'll face myself/to cross out what I've become/erase myself/and let go of what I've done._

_"_Why," she asked coldly, "Is Maximum Ride not dead?"

"It's only been a day," he felt obligated to point out.

"You had the _perfect _opportunity _today_. My Erasers had her for you." Anne Walker was not in a good mood.

"Oh, yes," he continued. "Why were _your _Erasers interfering with _my_ project? If you use those overgrown mutts, then you clearly don't need _me. _I'll just crawl back to my little dog cage, shall I? I don't know why you even bother--obviously, you have your mongrels, you don't need freaks like me to take care of your dirty work--"

She slapped him.

He stood up, eyes flashing. Anne Walker felt a twinge of fear.

"You'll regret that," he said softly.

"I," she said calmly, not betraying the erratic beat of her heart, "don't tolerate cheek or sarcasm. The Erasers were there to help. But if you don't feel like you need it, fine. Give me Maximum Ride's dead body by the end of the month."

She turned to leave the safe house, then paused. "The reason we use you versus the Erasers is because they rely too much on their instincts--bloodthirsty instincts. You were trained to _think_. An ultimate weapon, we thought. But if your emotions get in the way, then we'll have to see what we can do about that."

She slammed the door. _This is a mistake_, her brain screeched. She ignored it. She hadn't built Itex from dust with her emotions.

Inside the safe house, Nudge burst downstairs.

"What's going on?" she demanded.

"Nothing."

"You're jaw's twitching," she observed. "You're annoyed by something."

"Can you help me make dinner?"

"School was awesome." She grabbed plates."I already have friends and my teacher's really nice." She paused and turned around. "Look," she said. "I don't usually ask questions. I like talking and when you ask a question you have to let the other person talk, unless it's a rhetorical question--look. Never mind. But what exactly are we supposed to be doing here?"

"Learning."

"Well, usually Angel and I know what's going on. We haven't been told _anything_. So _you're _clearly doing something and _we're_ not. But _what_?"

He looked at her.

"It's no use trying to protect us," Nudge said, voice steely. "I'll ask Angel to find out. She could. She doesn't know anything--yet. She doesn't want to. But if I ask her, she'll tell me."

"Nudge," he said, turning away. "Don't worry. Anne and I just thought you'd like the experience of school."

"But you and Anne aren't real chummy, are you? 'Specially after just now. Spit it out." Nudge gazed at him with large brown eyes. She was only eleven.

He was only fourteen.

"I have to kill someone," he said bluntly. It sounded so ugly put like that.

"Someone special," Nudge stated. "All right. Fine. No more questions."

"Someone very special," he said under his breath.

Word Count: 499  
**Coming up next time: **

**_People overreact sometimes. And when they do, it makes me suspicious. Call me paranoid, but..._**


	10. Occasional Overreactions

**_A/N _I really like this chapter. It ties up nicely. **

**Also I found a rather...amusing website. A wikiHow on how to act like Maximum Ride. And I quote:** Max is the leader of 'The Flock'- a group of kids who are 98% human, 2% bird. **So get five friends, who have similar personality traits to the following: **Fang is the** quiet one**. He usually wears black, but **he's not emo**, just **really quiet**. Also her love interest, but thats all i'm sayin'.

Iggy** is the blind one** and amazingly amazing, but he can get around easily. He is also **mostly blind**.

**I say whoever wrote that deserves a prize.** **"Get five friends with similar personality traits to the following". Lolz. **

**Sorry about the gap. BUSY, like everyone else. **

**The bookfair at my school started. The bookfair is where I first got Maximum Ride. I FINALLY got this one edition of STWAOES that Amazon kept telling me didn't exsist. **

_People overreact sometimes. And when they do, it makes me suspicious. Call me paranoid, but..._

_"_Max was fighting today," Iggy announced as we piled into Jeb's car at 4:52.

Jeb turned around and glared at me. "School?"

I was offended, not to mention pretty PO'd at Iggy for tattling. I jabbed him with my elbow. "Thanks," I hissed.

"He would have noticed the bruises," Iggy added primly. "I did, and I'm blind."

"_No one _would've noticed if you hadn't tried to hug me! What was that about?"

"You--"

Jeb cleared his throat. "Fighting, Max? Who was it? Should I be expecting a call from Mr. Pruitt?"

"No," I said tightly. "I took a walk and some homeless dude tried to mug me."

Jeb stiffened. "One? Only one, and you had bruises?"

"All right, two!" I said angrily.

The first one had landed a_--_a as in singular-- punch_, only_ cause I wasn't paying attention _and_ I managed to whip my head out of the way before any damage was done. I had a very small bruise on the edge of my jaw.

Plus, Buddy had a really strong bearhug and I hate to admit it, but hypothetically he might possibly have kinda sorta cracked a rib. _A _rib. One.

Which of course hurt like the dickens when, for no reason, Iggy tried to hug me when I got back, which caused me to double over and swear, and subsequently caused the librarians to shoot death beams out of their eyes at me.

I told this all to Jeb.

He was not happy.

In fact, he was worried.

Very worried.

"Oh, God, we've got to file a report, with the police department and the school and take you to the hospital..."

In the back, the three of us exchanged looks. Well, me and Gazzy.

"Whoa," Gazzy said.

"It's a hypothetical cracked rib, Jeb, not brain hemorrhaging," I said, alarmed. "It'll take about five minutes to heal. No hospital necessido."

He started muttering about bone splintering and punctured air sacs.

"Besides," Ig said slyly. "We don't want the hospital asking too many questions, no? About Max's...unique anatomy?"

"Ditto for the police," I added. To Iggy, under my breath, I said, "I'm going to pretend you said _Max's unique anatomy_ without that smirk on your face."

Jeb glared in the rearveiw mirror. "Fine," he said. "Fine. But Max doesn't go anywhere alone."

"_I can take care of myself!"_ I flared.

"That goes for the boys too."

There were loud protests.

"Listen!" Jeb yelled. "There's something much deeper going on here. I'm going to take a stab and say that homeless dude who attacked Max was not homeless. He must've been good to land a punch on you."

I was slightly mollified.

"I'll do some digging," he said, obviously upset. "This is not good. Not at all."

"Does this mean the School?" Gazzy blurted.

Jeb turned and met our eyes. "Yes," he said. "That's exactly what it means."

Word Count: 493

**Coming up Next: **

**_People close to you can be stupid, ignorant, tattling pigs and you have to deal with them because they're sweet. _**


	11. Ominous Intuition

**_A/N: _Good news: You got an update**

**Bad news: It might be a while. I have soccer starting and I'm going to be swamped from here until June. I want to wrap this up soon, so I'll be doing a few mass updates on weekends. **

**WARNING: I have not read FANG yet. NO SPOILERS, PLEASE. **

**ALSO: I don't want to be that whiny author, but I'd love more feedback. What am I doing right? Wrong? Help? **

**LASTLY: I give up. I cannot write a summary for this story that sounds vaugely non-cliched. So either my story is highly cliched (not unlikely) or I'm hitting a brick creative wall. So...**

**REVIEWERS: WRITE ME A SUMMARY! The winner...gets a summary. And recognition. And bragging rights. Help me out here.**

_People close to you can be stupid, ignorant, tattling pigs and you have to deal with them because they're sweet. _

"So how's the hypothetically cracked rib?" asked Iggy.

"Hypothetically healed." I yawned, curled up on the couch then patted the space next to me. He sat.

"So," he said.

"So."

"Are you okay?"

I looked at him in surprise. "Yes, why?"

"You seem a little...off."

"Not that I've noticed."

"Well, I have. Anything you want to talk about?"

"Yes. In fact, there's something I've been meaning to tell you for a while." I paused. "I'm Hannah Montana."

He didn't laugh. "I'm serious."

"Wow. Way to kill the mood, Ig."

He sighed. "Anything happen today you want to tell me about?"

"Besides being attacked a homeless guy and his BFF who may or may not be working for a secret evil science lab and who've both managed to dent my pride? No, Dr. Phil, nothing. Maybe..." I hesitated. "it's you?"

"It probably is," he admitted. "I can't shake the feeling that...something big's going to happen. Soon."

"Define big."

"Uh..." he frowned, the skin between his eyes folding and creasing. "Life-changing."

"Well, I was wondering more if it was a good big or a bad big."

"A big-big."

"Helpful. You done with homework?"

"Yes, mom."

"Where's Jeb?"

"At the store. With Gazzy, if that was what you were going to ask. Why?"

"Well," I said guiltily. "I, unlike you, am not done with mi tarea. And I, unlike you, have a sudden craving to watch NCIS. And you, unlike Jeb, are not going to keep me from watching the unresolved sexual tension between DiNozzo and Ziva. Cheers."

"You know that there's no new episode this week."

Oh, right. "Oh well."

* * *

_Maybe sometimes instincts are better than logic. _

The phone rang.

"I'll get it," called Nudge from the kitchen.

_BRRRRRRRRNG._

"Actually," she said. "Um. Fang. You, uh, might want to get..."

He got up and leaned against the doorframe of the study. "Why?"

BRRRRRRRRNG.

"It's, um, Anne."

BRRRRRRRRNG.

"Fang?"

BRRRRRRRNG.

"Get it," Angel called from the TV room. A themesong that sounded suspicously Disney floated out from that area.

BRRRRNG--_Hello, you've reached---_

"Got it," he muttered, grabbing the extension in the study. "Hello?"

"Anne Walker's not very happy with you."

The voice was male and not familiar.

"I didn't need you to tell me that," he said slowly. "Whoever you are."

"That's no matter. I'm just here to tell you that if you don't finish your assignment--well, you're screwed."

"I didn't need you to tell me that either. Are you my conscience?"

"A close, personal friend of Anne's."

"Does she know you're talking to me?"

There was silence for a moment. "I'm giving you a friendly reminder. Get this wrapped up by Christmas."

"Or?"

The line went dead.

"She doesn't know he's talking to me," he said.

"Who doesn't?" Angel inquired, popping her head around the doorframe.

"My new conscience." Fang winked at her. "Nothing to worry about." _I think_.

**_Not that I've had experience with this type of thing, but dates seem to turn out bad when knives start getting involved. _**


	12. Bad Ideas

**_A/N: _Hello. I am really tired and I feel like I have a lot to tell you lovely reviewers but I can't quite recall...anything. **

**Oh, um. Yes. Updates = few and far between because of SOCCER. **

**And thanks for the advice about the summary, dudes. I think what I'm gonna do I use YOUR reviews as my summary. Clever? I like to think so...lazy?...yes... If anyone has any objections, please review or PM me and I will respect your wishes. Also, if you want me to use your review, um, tell me...or write really good reviews. XD Sorry. I'm just too lazy to write my own summary. Heh. **

**IMPORTANT: IF I HAVE NOT REPLIED TO YOUR REVIEW, DO NOT TAKE IT PERSONALLY. TELL ME NOW, AND I WILL REPLY AND APOLOGIZE INCESSENTLY. I AM EXTREMELY SCATTERBRAINED AS OF LATE. **

**Quote: [We're doing Punnett squares in science. Apparently the offspring of black and white chickens are blue. So on my homework I wrote the results of the particular Punnett: 100% BLUE CHICKEN in all captial letters. It made me happy to look at....but back to the quote] "Do these chickens fly? Because...blue, flying chickens... *class stares, teacher stares* ...that would be exellent..." [BlueFlyingChickens. BlueWingedKitty. Hm. Maybe I ought to switch my username. ;)]**

**Onto the chapter. Which again, I don't own. No one ever does. **

_Not that I've had experience with this type of thing, but dates seem to turn out bad when knives start getting involved. _

So Tuesday I sorta got mugged by a questionably homeless person. Wednesday I failed a pop quiz in Geometry. Thursday I got asked out on a date. Movie. Inviticus.

Well, I said no.

As you may have guessed, it was Nick.

Why did I say no? Let's make a list.

1. I've known him less than a week.

2. He's managed to creep me out, totally, in that less than one week.

3. Jeb said no going anywhere alone. So if I did go on a date, I'd be dragging Ig and Gazzy along. Not the best idea.

4. Inviticus looked like a sports movie. An inspiring sports movie, but a sports movie nonetheless. No sports movies for me.

5. I would never, ever hear the end of it from the lunch crew, especially JJ. And Tess. And Bella. And oh, yeah, IGGY.

This made life really awkward. But not as awkward as I was expecting. Nick kept his distance. I was polite.

So a week later, I was in the entrence of a movie theater, with the lights off, and a movie playing...and oh, yes, being held at knife-point. On _my date. _

What a wonderful way to begin Christmas vacation!

Ig just walked in and guessed what I was typing. He says to go back a bit.

Well, actually, it was Friday. December 18th.

Jeb picked us up from school, looking rather stressed.

"I have a business meeting," he explained, as he narrowly missed running over some small children. The crossing-guard gave him the finger. "Stay in the house. Don't play in the snow."

"There's no snow," Gazzy observed in an unhappy voice.

Jeb didn't notice.

Flash-forward: about 7:30PM.

"Okay, I can't stand this," Iggy announced, stumbling into the TV room, where I was planted in front of the TV watching, predictably, NCIS on DVD. Or trying to.

"Can't stand what? The unresolved-sexual tension between Ziva and Tony?"

"No," he said empathically. "Come on! It's the first day of break, and all you can do is sit in front of the tube and Gazzy's staring out the window trying to make it snow with his mind."

"Did you want to go to a party?"

"No. Let's...go to a movie."

I looked at him incredoulously. "Are you serious?"

"We can take the bus. We've got money."

"Jeb's gonna kill us."

"Not if he doesn't find out."

I was tempted. "This is going to bite us in the butt. I...don't think..."

He looked crestfallen. "Aw. Um. It's just...I don't know what I want to do with myself."

I had an urge to say _Go make a bomb, _but I figured I'd regret that later.

So that is how I got guilt-tripped into watching a movie with the Gasman and Iggy. It was a bad idea.

Word Count: 486

Coming up next time:

_Roll with the punch. Better yet, don't get punched. _

He was little more than four, if he even was four. There he was, in a cold, blank room made of cinder blocks. There weren't any iron bars, but it had the feeling of a prison just the same.


	13. More Punching

…**Hi guys. Long time no see? Um…Yeah. Sorry about my absence. Last couple months have been crazy.**

**Anyway, big news for me…during the end of the year insanity I found out I won a short story contest. I was floored. I can't share the story (even though it's online) because then you'd all know my name and where I live. Ha. Not happening, sorry. **

**BUT: winning = money = enough money to buy a laptop= a laptop = faster writing = more writing = more chapters, faster = HAPPY REVEIWERS (I hope).**

**I'm writing at a breakneck (sorta) pace. I have like 4 chapters done. I'll update ASAP, but I don't have WiFi at my house, so I have to go to the library. **

**Lastly: I am utterly giving up on that goshdarn summary. I'll just put something random up. Whatever. –concedes defeat- **

**(I also got addicted to House, but that's not relevant.)**

_Roll with the punch. Better yet, don't get punched. _

He was little more than four, if he even was four. There he was, in a cold, blank room made of cinder blocks. There weren't any iron bars, but it had the feeling of a prison just the same.

He shivered, the feathers tickling his back as his wings shuddered. The air was cool, but dry.

He had no memory of coming to this place. He remembered his cage-or when he was good, a small cell with a cot and toilet and a desk and a tiny window.

But that was not this room. This room was dark and unfriendly and smelled like blood.

Something growled. A shadow rose, higher, higher until it unfolded and revealed itself to be a wolf-child. It-he-she- shook its head, as if muddled. Sniffed the air. Bared ivory canines. Slowly focused on the small child huddled on the far end of the room.

"SUBJECT SIX," a small, square box blared. "SUBJECT ONE-THREE-ONE. Engage."

He did not understand. The wolf-person did. Grinned. Lept at him.

With a shriek, he tumbled aside. Claws grazed his shoulder.

"SUBJECT SIX, DEFEND YOURSELF."

With what? With a cry, he rushed to the far end of the room, stumbling over his feet as he ran. The wolf-person spun and snarled.

He was crying. There was a door-here-but it wouldn't open, and he was absolutely sure this nightmare was going to kill him.

"SUBJECT SIX!" screamed the box. "Do not run! Engage! Roll with the punches. Don't get punched. Punch_ it_. DO YOU UNDERSTAND?"

He turned, but a heavy hand-paw clouted his face. He twisted away from it. It took away some sting.

"Good," said the box, satisfied.

He didn't remember what happened after that-only snatches of fighting, the sensation of his palm striking flesh. Something seemed to have possesed him after that first hit.

Then he stood, hands and bare feet stinging, the stench of blood everywhere, scarlet covering everthing. He looked down. The wolf-child's eyes met with his. No longer bloodthirsty. Pained, yes. But also...peaceful_. Thank you for relieving me of this life. _Glazed. The spark...gone.

A door opened.

"Vonder-ful," a man said. "Simply ah-mazing. Zat vas perfect. Ve'll take it."

But a woman picked him up, firmly. Brown hair. Brown eyes. She smelled sweet.

"You're all done today," she whispered.

_Roll with the punches. _A lesson well learned.

And punches weren't always _punches. _Sometimes they were decisions

Silently he leapt off the tree a few minutes after Max-because that was her name, after all.

He followed them.

* * *

**_When you least expect it…things get interesting. _**


	14. Interesting Interruptions

**Hiya. I updated. Took a lot of running back and forth from my laptop to the internet-connected computer. Also, threw a hissy on me. But I updated! -is proud- **

**By the way, you guys really do rock my socks for reviewing the last chapter. I was wondering if there was anybody left following this story. That's why I updated so fast. **

**Think you'll like this chapter. :)**

_When you least expect it…things get interesting. _

I never did see that movie. Why? Because when Iggy and Gazzy were off buying popcorn during the previews, Nick came up to me.

With a knife.

I didn't see it at first.

"Oh hi," I said brightly. "I'll be leaving now." I got up but felt a hand on my shoulder. Then I felt the knife tip, right by my ear.

All together now: CRAP.

"Oh." I exhaled. "Well."

"This way." I shuddered. Feeling his breath by my cheek. It was creepy.

I elected not to make a fuss. It would be easier to get stabbed in the dark. Less witnesses, lower visibility. I'd wait till I got out of the theater.

He snaked an arm around my waist, slipping the knife under my shirt, by my stomach.

We got to the exit. When the doors swung open, thought, Nick stiffened. "Back into the theater," he murmured.

I made my move. I stomped on his foot. Not very Jackie Chan, but it did its job. He looked down for just a second. I took that opportunity to snap my hand upwards, into his face. The other hand pulled his arm off my waist and yanked it behind his back, classic style. You've all seen that in movies. It really works and it's really painful. I pushed him into a wall.

"What do you want?" I demanded.

Unfortunately, Nick seemed to be pretty adept in fighting, too. He uncoiled, away from the arm, freeing himself to whale on me from behind. Which he did. I ducked, but lost track of him. Not good. He kicked out one of my legs and wrapped an arm around my neck. He was still holding the knife.

"I'm protecting you," he hissed. "We should talk."

I raised my eyebrows, but made no comment. This was partly due to the fact that I was choking. I was going to do something about that.

I bent my knees, moved back into him, and twisted my hips. He flew off me. I sank a knee into his chest, grabbed the knife, stuck it into my waistband and hauled him to his feet. Then I smashed him into a wall, made an x with my arms, snatched the collar of his t shirt, and _pulled. _

"This is a blood choke," I informed him. "I am depriving your brain of oxygen through blood. You're air way is quite unrestricted. However, if I keep this up, you will pass out in about five minutes." I paused. "You wanted to talk?"

I leaned forward, right into his face.

"Then talk."

**Word Count: 481 **

_There's quite a subtle art to spinning a story. Chances are, if you tell a good tale, you're good at lying. You're also good at catching liars. _

* * *

* * *


	15. Spinning Stories

_**Hey all: Again many apologies for the late posting. I know I told at least one reveiwer I'd update by Friday. That was last week. This week, Word decided to freak out on me, so I haven't been doing much. This chapter I luckily had tucked away but had no internet to post it. But here we are...enjoy. I'll try to fix Word ASAP, but don't hold your breath.**_

_There's quite a subtle art to spinning a story. Chances are, if you tell a good tale, you're good at lying. You're also good at catching liars._

To my surprise, he did talk.

"I was meant to kill you. I was sent from Itex."

"Well then why shouldn't I just snap your neck _right now_?" I whispered into his ear, tightening my hold to underline my point.

"Because I'm not going to kill you." He was extremely calm, looking at me with unreadable eyes.

"That totally explains the knife, then," I hissed sarcastically. "Thanks for clearing that up for me."

"I," he said evenly, "Was going to fake a kidnapping. I was going to tell you when we got out of the theater. There was an empty parking structure where I was going to explain all this. But my boss is out there, and she is _not_ part of the plan."

I blinked. Well…

"It's full of holes."

"What?"

"Your plan. It's totally hole-y. Like…one of those noodle drainer things. So that tells me something, It tells me you made this up on the fly. Probably on the way here. Or…" I paused for dramatic effect. "you're making it up _right now._"

"But I'm not," he said.

"Why should I believe you? You're…whatsit…under _duress."_

"No. Not really." He ducked, breaking my hold. Grabbing an arm, he spun and pinned _me_ against the wall.

Okay. Maybe I should've seen that coming. But I wasn't used to people stronger than me.

"I made it up on the way here," he admitted. "Will you cooperate now?"

"Why?" I attempted to make eye contact. The movie had begun, and the light from the screen danced over both our faces. "Why are you doing this?"

He let go of me, rubbing his neck.

"Why?" I pressed.

"I'm…tired of being a pawn. Being used." He exhaled and said softly, "and I couldn't kill you. You're…like me."

"Ho—" I began, but right then he burst out his wings.

Hello.

Yes, I said his wings. As in, wings that were attached to his body. Like _my_ wings.

"Oh," I said. It only seemed appropriate shrug off my jacket and open my wings too. We stood there a second, staring at each other.

"Do you believe me now?"

"Maybe." I tucked my wings back in and put on my jacket. "Let me get my brothers. We'll go back to my house and talk."

"I should contact my tea—" he stopped. "_Sisters…" _He seemed unused to the word.

Now let me say something here: The whole time we were fighting/talking, we were almost dead silent. You'd have to practically be a bat to hear us.

Iggy_ is_ a bat.

"Hello there," he piped up. I looked back. He was standing behind us with Gazzy, in the shadows. "I believe Max _didn't _want to go on a date with you?" And with remarkable aim for a blind guy, he lunged forward and hit Nick in the head.

**Word Count: 500, unless Word is lying.**

**No preview this time. Word won't let me copy and paste. :( Reveiw?**


	16. Things Happen

**So. I'm alive. Hi. **

**I do have my excuses for being gone, like, a really long time. NaNoWriMo is involved as is homework and pit orchestra. And regular orchestra. And school. And life in general. **

**But on the bright side, my laptop just got back from the repair shop on Friday, and it made me very happy . So yay updates!**

_Boys are really dumb sometimes. I don't think further comment is necessary._

A little recap for everyone.

Nick has knife.

Nick also has wings.

Iggy tackles Nick.

I was very tempted to scream at Iggy and yell out a few choice words, but the movie was still playing and that could be awkward to explain. So here's what I did instead.

"IGGY," I hissed, grabbing after him. I managed to catch his elbow and collar. This was good. These were good control points, as any bodyguard or anyone with little siblings could tell you. I hauled him off Nick.

"What's your problem?" demanded Iggy, turning and shoving me off him. Gazzy watched with wide eyes. Nick looked on, almost amusedly.

"We were talking!"

"Yes, I heard that," he said slowly, as if I needed this explained in great detail. "He was setting you up!"

"I don't know how much you heard," I said, trying not to raise my voice. "But I heard enough that I was willing to give him a shot. "

"It's a trap! Idiot!"

"At _our_ house? Let's not forget that on the way to said house it would have been three on one in any fight! It was safe. Maybe you're jealous?" It was a cheap shot, but he jerked back like I'd burned him.

"Oh my God, you _are _jealous," I said, so quietly I didn't hear it, but I know he did by the way he turned away sharply.

"Now is not the time to be discussing this," he said tightly.

I sucked in a deep breath and looked at Gazzy. "We outnumber him, and we'll be at our house. What'd you say?"

Gazzy looked at me, then Iggy, then Nick, then me. He didn't look wide eyed and puzzled anymore, just a little weary. Or maybe relieved. "Okay."

"Then it's settled," I said firmly. I looked at Nick. "We'll leave now." I left no room for objection, spinning on my heel and heading towards the theater entrance. With no preamble, Nick grabbled my elbow. "We shouldn't go out that way," he said, ignoring Gazzy as he leapt forward and twisted his wrist. I shook my head at Gaz slightly and yanked my arm out of Nick's grip.

"Why not?" I said irritably. I was getting tired of everyone grabbing each other. You know.

"My—handler. Boss. She's out there. And she doesn't know what I'm doing."

I was frustrated. I was sick of this cloak and dagger crap. I wanted a full story, not all these bits.

"Fine," I said. "The other exit goes to a hallway to the parking lot. We'll go that way." I walked off quickly before anyone could object.


	17. Life Lessons

…**hello. **

**I'm not dead. Sorry for the long (long, long, long, long, long) wait. :/ My bad. I have no excuse other than writers block. And pit. And Doctor Who.* And life. Sorry. :( **

_Life lesson: If it seems like it should be really epic and dramatic moment, it's gonna be anti-climactic. Sorry._

It was easy to get out of the movie theater. We just walked out. It wasn't even an epic walk. It was a an anxious speedwalk, which probably looked pathetic. Nobody noticed us. There was a security camera , but I couldn't do a lot about it without breaking a couple laws and making this whole situation 89.7% more complicated.

No one was in the hallway. I half-expected a pair of ninja hobos, but nope. Probably because I wasn't supposed to be there and apparently Nick's handler thought he was actually going to go see a movie.

I stepped outside and the wind instantly blew back in my face, making this seem even un-epic-er. I spat out my hair and turned around.

I had an interesting entourage.

Nick was wearing black and had a grim set to his mouth. _He probably made the anxious speedwalk look epic. He could make anything look epic. _I immediately banished the thought from my head.

Iggy's jaw was clenched and I felt something…fall…inside me as I looked at him. Like I'd failed him. I didn't know why. And it sure didn't feel good.

Gazzy was chewing his cheek nervously. It really hit me then that he was only eight. What was I dragging him into?

As I was reflecting on these deep thoughts, the wind was causing my hair to blow around unattractively. When models or actresses take pictures, there's a fan and it makes them and their hair look fantastic. Not with me. It was gusting so hard that half my hair was blown up to a 90 degree angle to my head.

And yes, I actually was thinking about this.

If we were in a movie, there'd be a really suspenseful, pulsing track and slo-mo close-ups and my hair would look great.

It was real life, though. No music, no cameras. Just bad hair and tension so thick I felt like it'd choke me if I breathed too much.

The boys followed me.

"You said something about sisters?" I asked Nick curtly.

"They'll meet us. They know where we're going."

I'd have to accept it.

Then I realized something. "We've gotta take the bus."

We've got bird-human hybrids, a murder conspiracy, and a teenage double agent assassin stalker who looks fabulous in black.

(I didn't say that last bit.)

And we were taking the bus. This was getting so ridiculous, it felt inappropriate.

I shook my head and began to count out change. When I tried to hand some to Nick, he looked at me with extremely dark and unreadable eyes.

"Or," he said. "We could _fly._"

At which point he burst out his wings. In front of the whole parking lot.

And as dangerous as that was, it was the one moment of this whole incident that was as epic as it should have been.

**Word Count: 493, but I'm too lazy to double check. **

**I know I've been a sporadic updater at best but every single review telling me to update guilts me into updating more. And perisitent PMs help too (coughSharpestSatirecough :P). This chapter was one of the easiest to write. Help keep the momentum going. Reveiw! (Also you'll make me very happy. :D)**

**Heads up, also: I am thinking about changing my username. Just to let you know. ****Honestly, I never liked this one. Just never got around to switching it. I'll let you know. Just don't freak out if this story is updated with different name.**

**Thanks for reading. :) **

***Doctor Who: I have to plug this show. I really do. Because I love it so so so much right now. If you wish, you can wander over to my profile which I updated in the midst of my obession with the Tenth Doctor and currently resembles a shrine to David Tennant. Which is okay, but I really do love Matt Smith as well. And, you know, the rest too. Ahhfhghgh. *fangirls* **


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